Full-cap 'bang', shaking off the sluggishness in the second half, Park Dong-won's unchanging goal "winning catcher"

LG Twins' main catcher Park Dong-won led the team to victory with a come-from-behind grand slam. A bright smile spread around his mouth.

LG avenged its defeat the previous day by winning 6-3 in Game 14 of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League season at Daegu Samsung Lions Park on the 16th. As the SSG Landers lost 6-10 to the Lotte Giants, the gap between the leading LG and the second-place SSG widened to seven games.

On the mound, starting pitcher Lee Jung-yong had a good start in quality, while Park Dong-won's shot was crucial in the batting lineup. With two outs and a full base, the team hit Kim Dae-woo's five-ball curve and hit a grand slam over the left fence. It was his sixth grand slam in his career and his first grand slam since moving to LG.

LG, who turned the game around at once, was able to take a step closer to victory by changing the atmosphere, and LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop also praised Park Dong-won, saying, "I played a difficult game with a lot of leftovers in the beginning of the attack, but the flow that was blocked became easier when Park Dong-won hit his first grand slam of the season."

After the game, Park Dong-won said, "Honestly, I thought I wanted to go out with a walk at first, and I was not confident because I had never hit (Kim) Daewoo's ball," adding, "When the first pitch came in, I thought, 'Should I not hit it?' He also gave up a walk to the previous batter (Kim Min-sung). However, as soon as the second pitch became a strike, I changed my mind a little, and I thought that two RBIs were more important and I should be active than one. That's why I think I got a good result," he said.

Park Dong-won, who had previously been silent with no hits in 11 at-bats against Kim Dae-woo, said, "I don't even remember." I was lucky. "The ball came to the center, so a better ball came out," he said. "I know the player's tendency well because I played with him, but it didn't fit." In addition, Park Seung-kyu's good defense has caught a good batting in the past," he looked back.

In addition, Park Dong-won, who had a hard time defending bunt the previous day, made up for his disappointment by catching first baseman Jose Pirella at second base with an accurate throw when Kang Han-ul attempted a sacrifice bunt at first base with no outs in the bottom of the second inning.

"(Kim Hyun-joon's batting on the previous day) was not something I could catch, but I couldn't have it because I wasn't confident in a bad situation even though the second ball (Kim Sung-yoon's bunt attempt) was a catch." So I think I thought I would take care of everything that comes in front of me."

Park Dong-won, who had a steep home run pace at the beginning of the season, hit 15 home runs in the first half of the season alone, but has slowed down in the second half and has only three home runs. Park Dong-won said, "I think my condition is improving. "Before that, I thought a lot that I couldn't get over the infield because the ball didn't stretch out, and I think I didn't get a long hit as the hitting point hit well in front of me and started to not hit at some point," he analyzed the reason for the slump.

Although Park struggles every summer when it comes to hitting, he tries to overcome the crisis wisely.

He said, "It was so hard, but this difficult situation came again. But looking back on the past, it was hard because it didn't come out well in terms of performance, but the team has never been in first place and now our team continues to maintain its lead. "Since other players are doing so well, I think this is a happy thing and I think I'm getting better by practicing the same," he said.

So, there is only one goal, "winning catcher." Park Dong-won smiled about his greed for the Golden Glove, saying, "Wouldn't it be more likely if he wins?" and added, "First of all, winning seems to be the first thing. Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha Eagles) is playing well, so I can't achieve the home run king just by achieving career high. "I think I need to set a goal closer to my eyes, and I think I'm a little closer to winning (in that respect), so I think it's right to run for it," he vowed.

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